*Jethro pushed open the door to Layla’s law practice. “Morning,” he greeted Emily. “Is Sadie available? Thought I’d pop in while I was in town collecting some feed and see how she is.” Because he couldn’t go a day without speaking to her, touching her.
“No. Down at court. Won’t be back until later today. I can tell her you called and give her those flowers you’re hiding behind your back though.”
Jethro pulled them out and grinned as he noticed one of the wild daisies he’d picked from the side of the road had a bent stem. “Sure thing. Thank you.” He thrust them over.
“Any message?”
“Uh, tell her I’ll call her later.” He tipped his hat at Emily and left, brushing past a well-dressed gentleman on the way out.
Jethro went to the feed store, loaded up with oats for the horses, and returned to the ranch before lunch. He was unloading the bags of feed into the barn when he heard Clumsy barking. A hired limo pulled up and the back door opened. Jethro stood watching as a tall man in his early sixties climbed out. The same man he’d passed in the office earlier.
“Jethro Hansen?”
“Yes, sir. And you are?” He could tell who his visitor was. Sadie had the same eyes, the same shaped face. Looked like her father was here to try to scare him off. He’d been expecting some backlash from her decision to stay in Marietta. What he hadn’t expected was a personal visit from the man himself.
“Winston St. Martin.” He looked around, curled his lip as Clumsy stepped closer to him with his teeth barred.
“Clumsy, here boy.” The dog sidled back to Jethro and leaned against his leg, his eyes firmly on the stranger, teeth bared. “What can I do for you, sir?”
Mr. St. Martin gazed around the ranch, taking in the ramshackle house, the potholes in the driveway, busted rails on some of the fences, and general wear and tear of too little money and not enough time. “So, you’re the reason my girl is having second thoughts about coming home?”
“Yes, sir.” He didn’t know she’d said anything to her parents, and his heart filled with love for her. She’d been brave to tell them, because she’d told him how they were going to react. The tremble in her voice had gotten worse when they’d discussed it last night. Her determination to make a stand hadn’t wavered, but Jethro wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d backed down. Hurt, but not surprised. His heart belonged to Sadie, he knew that now. But he wouldn’t blame her if she didn’t stay. He really didn’t have that much to offer her. She had to stay because she wanted to, not because he wanted it.
Now, seeing her father in person, he understood her reticence. Taller than Jethro by a good five inches and broader in the shoulders, Mr. St. Martin struck an imposing figure. Nobody that met him would think he was anything less than a wealthy, strong-willed person.
“This is a mistake.” He turned around, taking his fill of the ranch.
“Sir?”
“You heard me. Sadie’s making a huge mistake. She’s worked too hard to throw it all away for this.” He spread his arms and snorted a disbelieving noise. “Some cash-strapped cowboy in the middle of nowhere. She needs to be in Denver where there’s a partnership for her and a man worthy of her hand waiting to announce their engagement.”
Jethro’s stomach dropped.
“I see you don’t know about that. Goes to show you exactly what you are, doesn’t it? Nobody of importance, a dalliance she had to have before settling down.” He smirked at Jethro, who had trouble trying to get words out.
“No. You’re wrong.”
“I think not. I know all about you, Jethro Hansen. How your father dropped out, left your mother with nothing, and how the old man took you all in.” He smiled and took a few menacing steps toward Jethro. “Does my daughter know about the drug and the assault charges against you?”
Jethro swallowed back the bile rising in his throat. How had he found out? Who would even go looking for something like that anyway, and why would it interest him?
“I know what you’re thinking. Almost got her where you want her and in I come to save the day. How did I find out all about you?” He laughed, a bitter sound that cut right to Jethro’s heart. “My daughter isn’t your normal easygoing young lady. No, sir. She’s special. Her mother and I always knew that. Even as a little girl, Sadie knew exactly what she wanted and how to go about it.” He sniffed the air and screwed up his nose. “Nowhere in that plan was there a note about living here nor marrying a dirt-poor cowboy.”
“Sadie’s in charge of her own life. She’s changed her mind about what she wants.” They’d discussed it enough for him to know he spoke the truth.
“Yes, I’m sure she believes that. But here’s the problem as I see it. One thing my daughter hates more than anything is lies and I’m one hundred percent certain that she doesn’t know about your drug bust. She wouldn’t knowingly cohort with a drug user, because it goes against everything she believes in.”
“Drugs aren’t something she’s not seen before. She’s a lawyer, for goodness’ sake, and it was only a charge for possession. Not dealing or using.” In his mind, it still sounded terrible.
“Not important. You were charged and convicted. Not the type of person Sadie would knowingly marry.” He put his hands behind his back and looked around, distaste firmly etched in the lines of his face. “What’s it going to take for you to send her home? Money, threats from the bank to call in your mortgage perhaps?”
“You wouldn’t dare.”
Mr. St. Martin shook his head. “No, you’re right. I wouldn’t, but someone else might. And I won’t stop them either. So here’s what I’m thinking. You tell her it’s not going to work out between you and I’ll walk away ready to soothe my daughter’s broken heart. That’s the best deal I can offer you.” He stepped back to the car. “Think about it, and don’t take too long. Her mother has a wedding to plan.”
*
Sadie strode out of court and shifted her briefcase to the other hand as she walked down the front steps. It’d been a busy day and not everything had gone to her liking, but that was the law. Some she won, some she lost regardless of how well prepared she was. And Sadie believed in being more prepared than most.
She soaked up the late afternoon sun as she strolled back to the office. It was one of the things she found so charming about living in a small community. The friendly waves as she passed people she’d met, the cute shops with window displays to rival any of those in the city. She fought the temptation as she rushed past Sage’s Chocolate Shop and sucked in the smell of fudge.
Sadie wanted to stop at the Stop and Go store, grab steaks and ingredients for a salad, and drive out to the ranch. Tonight, she needed to see Jethro, to tell him she’d finally done it. Finally told her father she wasn’t going back to Denver. The weight had lifted off her shoulders once the words were out. Oh, she’d gone to bed with his anger ringing in her ears, but it’d been so worth it to be able to tell Layla today that she was willing to stay and take her up on the partnership on offer.
The contract had come through almost immediately and before she could change her mind, Sadie had signed them, committing herself to a life in the small town. Jethro would be thrilled. He doubted she’d do it, was concerned she would have regrets that would roll over into their relationship.
But that wasn’t going to happen. She loved him. Wanted to be with him whenever she could. Like now, when all Sadie wanted to do was rush out to the ranch and tell him she’d put the wheels in motion.
A black limo stood outside her office and a sense of dread rolled down her spine. Last night’s conversation came back to her. “I won’t let you make a mistake, Sadie. We’ve all worked too hard for you to throw it all away over some cheap cowboy in a little town nobody’s heard of.” And now he was here. She should’ve known he wouldn’t give up that easily.
Emily stood up as she walked in the door. “Sadie, thank goodness. He wouldn’t take no for an answer, and you had your cell turned off. I couldn’t warn you.” Her receptionist wrung her hands. Normally, Emily could deal with anyone. But this was Sadie’s father, and she knew the impact he had on people.
“Don’t worry. I’ll deal with him. If you hear crashing and yelling, ignore it.” She dropped her briefcase beside Emily’s desk and put a reassuring hand on her arm. “In the mood I’m in, I’m likely to throw something.”
“Okay, then. Shout out if you need me. I’ll be right here and try not to break too much.”
“I’ll do my best.” Sadie walked to the door.
“And stick to your guns, girl.”
Her father sat at her desk, papers in front of him he’d obviously been reading. She walked over, saw her new contract, and whipped it from under his gaze. “That’s none of your business.”
He leaned back in her chair, a smirk on his face. “Everything you do is my business.”
Sadie stood in front of the desk and stared him down. “Not any longer. I’ve made my decision and that’s that. I told you last night, Daddy, what I want. As you can see from snooping through my things, I’ve accepted a partnership and I’m going to stay in Marietta.”
“In this little hick town? How long do you think you’ll last, Sadie? Hmm, tell me that. Without your mother and I to prop you up and guide you along, just how far do you think you’ll get?”
“I don’t need propping up. I’ve worked my butt off to get where I am. Sure, you helped me when I was in law school, offered to pay for my partnership contribution in Denver, but I don’t want that. I want to stay here and work with the people I’ve met.”
“And what about James? He’s asked for your hand in marriage. How can you turn him down and even think about shacking up with that cowboy? I didn’t raise you to be that kind of girl. I thought you respected your parents more than this.” He pushed himself to his feet and away from the chair.
“What cowboy? You mean Jethro?” She gripped the edge of the table for stability as her legs went to jelly. What had her father done now? “How do you know about him? Please tell me you haven’t been to see him.”
“Of course I have. When you were home, you had damned stars in your eyes. We knew something was going on, and I checked it out, of course. Didn’t take much to find out who you were sleeping with and get my hands on his history.”
“How could you? It’s none of your business.”
“That, my dear girl, is where you’re wrong. Everything you do reflects on your mother and I. People talk, you know that. How do you think the people of Denver will take to their senator’s daughter living with a drug dealer?”
She reached for the chair behind her and sank into it. “Drug dealer?”
Her father came around the desk and crouched down, reaching for her hand. “Darling, I’m sorry to be the one to break it to you, but, yes. Jethro was charged and convicted of drug offenses a few years ago. Anyone can find out that kind of information.”
Her lungs deflated and tears rushed to her eyes. Jethro, a drug dealer? How was that even possible? “No. I don’t believe it.”
“Believe me when I say this, but I didn’t want to believe it either. It’s true, I’m afraid.” Her father took a sheet of paper from his inside pocket and handed it to her. Sadie looked at it as if it would bite, but eventually she took it and unfolded it, the words blurred as she scanned them. She folded it back and let it fall to the floor. “No. Not Jethro.”
Her father wrapped his arms around her. “Honey, I’m so sorry.”
“Why wouldn’t he tell me something like this? It’s a deal breaker, Daddy. You know how I feel about drugs. I can’t believe I didn’t pick it up. I must be losing my touch.” She wiped her cheeks as the tears ran down her face.
“Love blinds us. That’s the reason your mother and I want you to marry someone we approve of. Someone who has the right pedigree, someone who shares your values, and will make the perfect match.”
“But James doesn’t make me feel the way Jethro does.” She took the tissue he handed her.
“Nor will he embarrass you the way Jethro will.” He sat on the edge of her desk and let her get her tears under control. “I think in light of this, you need to tear up that contract and return to Denver as soon as you can. If you like, I’ll speak to Ms. Cox on your behalf. Get her to let you go. I’m sure once she hears the reasons why, she’ll be only too happy to comply with my request.”
Sadie didn’t want to go back. She didn’t want to leave her new life. There had to be a reason for what Jethro did. She picked up the sheet of paper again. Read it with clearer eyes.
“It doesn’t say dealer, Daddy. Drug possession isn’t dealing and what he had wasn’t a profitable amount.” She jumped up. “I’m going to get to the bottom of this.”
“No, Sadie, wait.”
But she ignored her father and ran out the door.